Adventures in Motherhood (Part 2)

Well, I had planned on writing once a week more or less but it's only been three days and I'm ready to write again!

Okay, parents, let's talk crying babies... I know, I know, it isn't a very uncommon thing for a baby to cry but what about a baby who, up until about a week ago, has been a fairly happy baby and is now up multiple times in a night and crying all day? This is what is happening to me and I think it is because of a number of factors.

1. Gas

Oh gas, you are my nemesis. We have been struggling with gas almost since our babe was born. At first, being a new mom, I didn't realize how big an issue it could become. I would attempt to burp him but after only a few attempts I figured that he just didn't need to burp. I learned quickly that that is not the case and after doing some research realized that it can take sometimes up to five minutes to get a good burp out of your babe and if you don't burp them that gas travels through their digestive tract and is passed as toots instead. The problem with this is that it is painful for them to pass gas this way and comes out as a series of toots as opposed to one or two large belches. So we got into the habit of burping him after nursing on each side or if he would pull away after only a minute or two of nursing as, my research told me, this is also a sign of your babe being gassy.

I then began supplementing with formula as I believed that I was not producing enough milk (I later found out that this was not true, but I'll save that for another time) and this did not help our gas situation. He became so gassy and uncomfortable, I felt terrible for the little guy. I began looking up alternative diets thinking "what I eat, the baby eats" and so obviously it must be something that I was eating that was affecting him. I cut dairy out and I thought it had worked but it must have been a fluke because we quickly went back to our fussy gassy ways. I later learned that formula can be hard on a baby's system. It had never crossed my mind that formula could be our problem, I had assumed that it was basically the same as breast milk. It, of course, isn't and so I was able to cut that out and again things started getting better.

Now our issue has become that he won't burp for me! I have no idea what happened; it always took some coaxing but I could usually get a burp out of him after nursing. Now I can't get anything out at all. The only way that we can get him to burp now is what we have coined as "Daddy belly dances." Essentially we sit our son on my husband's belly with my son's feet forward and my husband would bounce him. It works like a charm! The only problem with this is that my husband works from noon until nine, or even later sometimes, and the baby would already be in bed for the night by the time he got home.

My only other saving grace when it comes to gas has been gripe water. I use it sparingly, to be honest this is usually because I forget I have it or because I am not sure that the issue is gas. I do find that almost every time I use it I end up getting a good belch out of him, so I really do need to use it more often. I would for sure recommend it if you find it hard to burp your gassy little ones!

2. Teething

To be honest, I am not 100 percent sure that my guy is teething, but the signs are all there. He's drooling like crazy, he is just mowing down on his hands (or my fingers), and he's extra fussy. Of course, this could also just be a baby being a baby. He definitely hasn't cut any teeth yet, and I am told I will be the first to know (Ouch!) and when I run my finger along his gums, the only bumps I feel are towards the back.

Upon doing research, the front teeth are normally the first to come in, but it can happen that the back molars erupt first. I have also been told that baby teeth like to pop up and down, wreaking havoc for months before they actually erupt.

Today being a particularly bad day for us, I gave him some Camilia which is a homeopathic remedy that is supposed to help with teething pain. I did not find that they did much to help. That being said, I am not 100 percent sure that he is, in fact, teething and so that could be why. I will try it again later and let you all know how it goes.

3. Four Month Sleep Regression

This one is a doozie, folks. Up until the past few nights, I have felt very guilty as my babe has slept through the night almost since we brought him home from the hospital. No joke, we would put him down at 8:00 and he would sometimes wake me up around 4:00 to nurse and then again at 7:00 to 8:00, but more often than not he would sleep through until 6:00. He would sleep through until 7:00 once or twice and by then I would normally wake up on my own because my boobs were going to explode. The past few nights he has been struggling to go down between 7:00 or 8:00 and then get up at midnight, 4:00, 5:00, 6:00, and then up for good at 8:00. Last night, he was basically up for good screaming at 4:30 (and continued screaming for the majority of the day).

So what is the 4-month sleep regression? I haven't really done any research on this one folks, mostly because I was hoping in vain that we would skip this stage, but I have heard it being discussed in my PPD support group and being told that it is not a regression. From what I understood from this conversation, regression means moving backwards, while it might seem like as far as sleep goes, your baby is doing anything but regressing. At four months, there is apparently a huge leap in brain development and so that is why the baby keeps waking up. Again, I haven't done much research on this topic yet but that makes a lot of sense to me.

4. Napping

Napping has recently become a problem. When he was younger, my guy would sleep wherever, whenever, seemingly all the time without assistance from us to doze off. Now he will only nap in his stroller after a walk or on me after nursing. There are so many "rules" out there on what you are supposed to and not supposed to do with your child and one of those "rules" is that you are not supposed to let your child sleep in their car seat. Well to that I say, you deal with my screaming sleep-deprived child then. The main reason that you are not supposed to let your child sleep in their car seat is because they are not flat, and they can potentially pinch their airway and suffocate. Currently, my car seat is my stroller and if my babe only falls asleep in his stroller on walks, I am not waking him! When he is sleeping in the stroller, I do not sleep. I make sure I keep an eye on him to make sure that his head hasn't slumped in a weird way.

I am going to start getting into a better routine with him and hopefully that will help with his naps. I know he isn't getting the sleep that he needs during the day and, as they say, sleep begets sleep. I will do a follow-up post in a week or two to let you all know how the napping is going.

So after all of this, there isn't much conclusion to be drawn other than that babies cry, and for a lot of reasons. As parents, we must take comfort in the fact that everything is a phase, good or bad, and at this age, the phases seem to change almost on a daily basis.

Good night all.